What makes a movie series a great or lasting achievement, like a “Godfather” trilogy or a “Lord of the Rings”?
The characters? The actors? The director and writers? The original source material?
Actually, it’s usually some alchemy generated among all of these elements–or a unity of vision imposed by a powerful creator.
This weekend, we get “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” another mega-budget film adaptation from the best-selling boy wizard children’s book series by England’s J.K. Rowling.
“Azkaban” continues a series that has so far grossed hundreds of millions, yet it marks a departure, with a darker and more mature Harry and Hogwarts. Though most of the core cast returns–including Daniel Radcliffe as Harry, along with many of his schoolmates, nemeses and teachers–there is a notable creative defection. Chris Columbus (“Home Alone”), who directed the first two lucrative “Potters,” has switched to producer alone, handing the magical reins over to Mexico’s Alfonso Cuaron–director of both last year’s lusty art-house hit “Y Tu Mama Tambien” and the lustrous 1995 children’s movie “A Little Princess” (a favorite, by the way, of Rowling). The movie is opening, of course, very wide.
At the same time, another much different series is at the local theater that ran Cuaron’s “Y Tu Mama,” the Landmark Century Centre on Clark Street. Lucas Belvaux’s “Trilogie” exemplifies the art-house series movie, a long-standing film form that often comes in threes.
As in the famous trilogies of Satyajit Ray, Ingmar Bergman, Mark Donskoi and Krzysztof Kieslowski, Belvaux’s work is a glorious expansion. It does in three films what you couldn’t possibly do in one: expand the story, deepen the characters and enlarge the themes.
In this “Trilogie,” Belvaux has written, directed and acted in three films that examine the same set of characters in the French border city of Grenoble–showing them during the same time span, but in different places, from different angles and even in different film genres: thriller, comedy and romantic drama.
The third “Harry Potter,” of course, will draw many more times the audience than Belvaux’s “Trilogie.” But both series easily illustrate our interest in stories that extend beyond the boundaries of the usual evening’s entertainment. Like the greatest series films–a list that should include “The Godfather Trilogy,” “Lord of the Rings” and Ray’s “Apu Trilogy”–they allow us the pleasure of extended stories, of following characters that intrigue us far past a single film’s running time.
The American movie series of Hollywood’s golden age were mostly second features–the Sherlock Holmes films with Basil Rathbone and Nigel Bruce, for example, and even MGM’s “Andy Hardy” pictures, with Mickey Rooney, which were so popular they carried the studio. Later on, after the massive success of “The Godfather,” “Jaws” and “Star Wars,” series and sequels became more common–and some of them (notably Sylvester Stallone’s “Rocky” and “Rambo” series) were simply a string of movies that kept repeating the formulas of the first.
By contrast, the best series movies always tended to project a single vision.
They were either adapted from excellent novels or novel series to begin with (like “Lord of the Rings” and the complete Russian “War and Peace”) or were the work of a single director and star, like the Sergio Leone-Clint Eastwood “Dollars” Trilogy.
All these movies keep us coming back for more–whether it’s a crowd-pleaser such as the “Back to the Future” trilogy or an art-house classic like Marcel Pagnol’s earthy and magnificent “Fanny” trilogy (newly restored and soon to be released on Kino DVD), Johnny Weismuller’s Tarzan flicks or Chris Reeve’s “Superman” efforts. “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” and “La Trilogie” probably will, too.
The audiences keep returning for some series–as the Japanese did 48 times, from the ’60s through the ’90s, for the “Tora-San” series. Similarly, they never seem to tire of Sean Connery’s Bond, Rathbone’s Sherlock Holmes, Boris Karloff’s Frankenstein monster, William Powell’s and Myrna Loy’s Nick and Nora Charles or Harrison Ford’s Han Solo and Indiana Jones. Now, with DVD and home theater, they probably never will.
The following is a personal selection of the 10 all-time great movie series in order of preference. All are available in video and (except for “The Apu Trilogy”) in DVD.
`The Godfather’ Trilogy
(U.S., director Francis Coppola: 1972, ’74, ’90). With Al Pacino, Marlon Brando, Diane Keaton, Robert Duvall. The great American movie novel. This Mafia saga follows the Corleone family’s dark rise and fall. (Paramount)
`The Lord of the Rings’ Trilogy
“The Fellowship of the Ring,” “The Two Towers,” “The Return of the King” (U.S.-New Zealand, Peter Jackson: 2001, ’02, ’03). With Elijah Wood, Viggo Mortensen, Ian McKellen. J.R.R. Tolkien’s classic fantasy adventure is realized with stunning skill, sweep and faithfulness. (New Line)
The Apu Trilogy
“Pather Panchali,” “Aparajito,” “The World of Apu,” (India, Satyajit Ray: 1955, ’57, ’59). One of the cinema’s greatest human documents. Ray’s tender, richly compassionate portrayal of an Indian village boy’s growth to manhood is based on the autobiographical novel by Bhibuti Bashan Bannerjee. (Bengali, with English subtitles.)
`War and Peace’ (four films)
“Andrei Bolkonsky,” “Natasha Rostova,” “1812,” “Pierre Bezukov” Russia; Sergei Bondarchuk, 1966-’67). The most expensive and elaborate of all Russian films, this astonishingly faithful and entertaining four-part, 8 1/2-hour version of Leo Tolstoy’s great novel of the Napoleonic Wars is far superior to the two-part version that won the 1968 Oscar; here, one whole film is taken up with the Battle of Borodino. (Russian, with English subtitles.)
`The Decalogue’ (10 films)
(Poland; Krzyzstof Kieslowski, 1988). With Jerzy Stuhr. Keislowski’s magnificent modern morality play; the 10 episodes (each originally an hour each in length) are all set in the same Warsaw housing apartment complex and illustrate the 10 Commandments. (Polish, with English subtitles.) (Facets)
The Dollars Trilogy
“A Fistful of Dollars,” “For a Few Dollars More,” “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly” (Italy; Sergei Leone, 1964, ’65, ’66). Sergio Leone’s magisterial but wry direction, Ennio Morricone’s slashing music, Tonino Delli Colli’s ravishing cinematography and the gritty iconic acting of Clint Eastwood and company make an unforgettable experience of these once reviled “spaghetti westerns.”
The Indiana Jones Trilogy
“Raiders of the Lost Ark,” “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” “Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade” (U.S., Steven Spielberg, 1981, ’84, ’89). With Harrison Ford. Producer George Lucas’ and Spielberg’s grandiose inflation of the ’30s-’40s Saturday afternoon adventure-lost kingdom serials that once quickened teenaged boys’ hearts everywhere and were now spiffed up and repackaged spectacularly enough to please everyone.
The Antoine Doinel Cycle
(five films)
“The 400 Blows,” “Love at Twenty,” “Stolen Kisses,” “Bed and Board,” “Love on the Run” (France; Francois Truffaut, 1959, ’62, ’68, ’70, ’79). With Jean-Pierre Leaud. Sad-eyed Jean-Pierre Leaud, at ages 14-35, plays the strangely failed alter-ego of cinephile/outsider writer-director Francois Truffaut. It’s a pity Truffaut’s death in 1984, at 52, kept them from making more. (French, with English subtitles.)
The James Bond Series with Sean Connery (seven films)
“Dr. No,” “From Russia With Love,” “Goldfinger,” “Thunderball,” “You Only Live Twice,” “Diamonds Are Forever,” “Never Say Never Again” (England, U.S.; Terence Young,1962, ’63, ’65; Guy Hamilton, 1964, ’71; Lewis Gilbert, 1967; Irvin Kershner, 1983). With Connery, Bernard Lee, Donald Pleasance, Lois Maxwell and Desmond Llewelyn. For my money, the long-running series diminishes after Connery departs in 1967–though he came back twice, in 1971 (“Diamonds Are Forever”) and again in 1983 (for “Never Say Never Again”). The best of all the other films is Roger Moore in 1978’s “The Spy who Loved Me” and Pierce Brosnan in 1995’s “GoldenEye.”
The `Star Wars’ Series
(five films, to date)
“Star Wars,” “The Empire Strikes Back,” “Return of the Jedi,” “The Phantom Menace,” “Attack of the Clones” (George Lucas, 1977, ’99, ’02; Irvin Kershner ’80; Richard Marquand ’83). The first movie had rougher effects and lots of heart; gradually, it’s felt by some, the effects got more spectacular, the heart emptier. But it’s still one of the universal myths of our time.
